Chimi Boyd-Keyes, director of the Women’s Center at NCCU, said it felt fantastic for the university to earn recognition for the work of the Helpers and Advocates for Violence Ending Now (or HAVEN) program.

Across all historically black colleges and universities, she said, the sexual assault reporting rate is about 14 percent.

“On a campus with 8,200 students, that’s a lot of people affected by sexual violence,” Boyd-Keyes said.

She noted that in communities of color, people don’t always talk openly about such issues.

“Something like this gives us a chance to have a real dialogue about it,” she said.

For information about the women’s center and its efforts against stalking and violence, visit nccu.edu/womenscenter/violence.cfm.

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